Notes / Commercial Description:
Our Adam aged in American Oak barrels. First released in 2000, and released again in November 2011 in 12oz bottles. This 12% beer has lots of the typical HOTD aromas: Caramel, brown sugar, tons of raisin and tobacco. Fig, date, and plum fruitiness in that order. This has a fairly strong earthy vinousness as well as oak vanilla.

Pours a very dark brown with a bit of a thin tan collar. The nose carries a good amount of musty oak and bourbon plus malt and some slight tobacco. Flavor has a bit more bourbon and isn't quite as integrated but is still quite nice. Medium body's with no alcohol and low carbonation. Standout stellar beer. Boom.

Pours deep brown almost black with a very thin head receding almost immediately to nothing. Not unexpected from the ABV.

Tons of raisin in the aroma. A little bit of leather and tobacco along with an earthy quality and vanilla oak and bourbon.

Same flavors come through as the aroma. I get a ton of raisin and fig along with subtle bourbon, vanilla and oak. The barrel is nicely integrated and let's the base flavor shine through. A little extra brown sugar sweetness and a little sweeter overall than I'd prefer, but very complex.

Almost flat which detracts a bit, but in a style like this, carbonation levels should be low anyway.

Pretty good beer, but not sure given how much it takes to trade for, if I'd value it that high. Glad I got to try it.

Poured into a snifter. Big thanks to Callmecoon for this. 2011 vintage.

4.0 A: Pretty damn close to black in color. Two fingers of frothy/creamy tan head. Retention is pretty good for the ABV, but no lacing is left.

4.0 S: Lots of the typical HOTD aromas in this. Caramel, brown sugar, tons of raisin and tobacco. Fig, date, and plum fruitiness in that order. This has a fairly strong earthy vinousness as well. Oak, vanilla, and peaty bourbon.

4.5 T: Tastes like the nose. Lots of caramel, brown sugar, raisin, tobacco. Fig, date, and plum fruits. Still a bit vinous, but not as much as the nose. Bourbon is peaty, earthy, and minimally spicy. Oak and vanilla are back. It's super complex for sure.

3oz from a 12oz bottle into a snifter.
A- Very dark brown, no head
S- Big bourbon nose, malty
T- Bourbon, chocolate, boozy
M- Thick, low carbonation
O- Nice beer but not out of this world. Enjoyed it but probably fell victim to the hype. Good bourbon character.

Bourbon has taken over a bit more in the flavor. Red wine-like in fruit and oakiness, with a lot of grape, cherry and berry notes playing off a hint of soy. Smoke, leather and green apple swirl in the mouth before the swallow, which is all bourbon, delivering toasty oak notes, coconut and dark chocolate.

Very creamybody — a viscous medium-full. Mild, tingly carbonation tingles the tongue. Alcohol comes through the nose a bit, but is nowhere near 12 percent.

My only complaint: I wish there was more Adam below the bourbon. Great blend though. Very rich; a beer for sipping.

Chilled bottle into a glass. Generously gifted by ramnuts and shared by alfrantzell. Thanks, Frank and Arne!

A: Pours an opaque, maroon body with a small percolation of brown bubbles that quickly settle out of solution and vanish. The beer is pushing the boundaries of low carbonation, but it does have bubbles.

S: I should probably state straight up that I have a soft spot for Adam (one of my favorite beers, and particularly one of my favorite old ales) as well as its variants. The aromas of aged base Adam shine through: tobacco, leather, smoke, chocolate, toffee, and dark fruit. On top of that is the barrel character: a caramelly bourbon, vanilla, coconut, nuts, oak, and a noticeable booze singe. I can't realistically give a 5.0 to something with booze in the aroma, but I suspect this will fade with time.

T: The barrel complements the aged Adam spectacularly. Vanilla, coconut, hazelnut, and oak blend seamlessly with toffee, chocolate, leather, smoke, and tobacco. Dark fruits are noted throughout (plum and fig), as well as a touch of oxidation that produces elements of soy and sherry. Again, my soft spot for Adam should be noted, but I am not giving this beer much of a pass. It seems like Adam was made to support bourbon barrel flavors. It bears them well.

M: Oily, slick. Adam amped up to 11. The body's heft doesn't quite hide its booziness, but the flavors linger without leaving any unpleasant sensations.

O: Very solid. It's a bit young, but I predict it will age phenomenally. I'm looking forward to tracking its progress in a year or two. In retrospect, I regret not asking for more of this.

A: Deep, dark, impenetrable brown with ruby traces. A nice quarter finger of cream colored head that fades to a quarter finger ring around the edges of the glass. Pretty good head retention considering the ABV. Minimal spotty lacing is left behind. Loving how dark a color this is and the presence of actual head here. Great.

S: Loads of raisin, ripe dark fruit, vanilla, oak, and bourbon. Lots of booze on this, this could possibly use more age. It's got an extremely sharp bouquet, with the ripe fruits and booze cutting right through. Little bit of leather and tobacco. Smells good, but I think this will continue to develop with age.

T: A lot of bourbon, vanilla, chocolate, oak, brown sugar, leather, some mild tobacco, and a lot of booze. This needs another year to fully develop, but it's drinking effing spectacular right now. The brown sugar sweetness and booze will drop off and the tobacco, leather, and raisin will pick up. But that being said, this is an amazingly complex and enjoyable beer.

M: Bottom line: it's hot and fairly aggressively carbonated. Flavors are all well integrated, but the booze needs to take a back seat and I would have liked to see less carbonation on this.

O: Adam FTW doesn't quite live up to the hype, but only because people are asking for 750mL bottles of CBS for one 12 oz bottle of it. It is a spectacular BA Old Ale that should be sought and savored. Just don't trade your cellar for it.

Pours a dark mahogany brown body, half finger white head with minimal retention, no lacing. It's pretty short-lived, but not to the point of clearly lacking any carbonation. Smell is rich dark fruit, bourbon, sweet chocolate malt, tobacco, touch of smoke, lots of oak. Complex and sweet, a touch boozy. Flavour is similar in its complexity. Dark fruit, a bit of smoke and ashiness, tobacco, char, chocolate, molasses, plenty of bourbon. Hefty bourbon presence is quite nice in mellowing out the rest of the beer which may otherwise be overwhelming. Mouthfeel is medium bodied, lower in carbonation but still reasonably carbonated. Mild bourbon heat on the finish. Very nice and complex beer with a lot of flavours going on here, and certainly superior to the Rye version from 2015. Not flat, but carbonation is not ideal either.

2011 bottle. Pours a very dark burgundy/chestnut that appears near black in the snifter, with a small creamy beige head of super tight bubbles. Nose is dates and cherries soaked in brandy, leather, smoke, a touch of brine which is just classic Adam. Very decadent alcoholic details on the nose. Mouth is very creamy, rich, alcohol heat throughout, lots of dripping dark fruits in brandy, bourbon, brine and leather in the mid palate, with a pleasantly hot finish. Takes the edgy qualities of a 2 year old Adam and just adds dimensions of complexity. I've been looking for this beer, wistfully, for years and was stoked to see it was being released again, and it doesn't disappoint at all.

Thank-you Tmappin; a stunning CanBIF receipt that has (for good reason) been on my "want" list for ages.

Beautiful burgundy colour without an ounce of carbonation (as foretold by many) with a robust aroma of figs, dried stone fruit and a variety of woods. The slick mouthfeel finishes with none of the alcohol heat I'd expect from +12% ABV. Taste has more depth & layers than I can begin to list, but combine to a warming and delicious well balanced barley "port". The nicest port I've ever enjoyed! This was a 2014 bottle that could have aged much longer.

Appearance- Same deal as Matt- no head appears. The head is probably a light beige but I really can't be sure. The body is more of a dark chocolate brown that a black. Almost has hints of ruby. There is also no lacing, just like Matt.

Nose- Very subtle from the bottle but it may need some time to open up. Honey, some apples, minor chocolate. There are also some raisins which are very subtle. A little more chocolate and some cocoa. Coconut and soy start to show themselves. A little disappointing after Matt. Chocolate becomes richer as it opens.

Taste- Starts off with some bourbon, minor wood (oak) and moves into light coconut. Quite subtle which is only natural after 3 years of aging and 2 more in the bottle. I actually wish it were fresher. Slight notes of plum and raisins but I don't really get any soy at first but this does appear on the finish after my second taste. No heat at all. Much more subtle than the fresh Matt. Deceptively simple though it obviously had incredible complexity. Chocolate, coconut, and raisins are still very strong. Somewhat vinous on the finish in a very complimentary manner. Dry finish wraps this up nicely but I would probably enjoy a little bit more of a linger. Starts to show more and more presence as it opens up. Soy starts to come through more and more as this opens up but it's nice- not too sweet or sticky as a lot of soy notes in beer. Little bit of leather and tobacco meets with a slight cinnamon on the finish.

Mouthfeel- Medium bodied but the lack of fullness doesn't bother me as much as it did with Matt. Slight carbonation as well but a little more zip which blends with the slight spice.

Drinkability- Incredibly easygoing. Light bit of heat that is masked well by the dominant flavor profile notes. Wouldn't pay 20 bucks for it again.

Overall- Great beer. Really solid. Definitely worth a try. Is it 20 bucks good- I'm not sure but probably not.

Pours a deep black, heavy and oily at the edges that seems opaque, although whether from haze, or just the depth of colour, no-one will ever know. Head is a slightly yellow white that forms a filmy fine ring around the edge. Doesn't leave much lacing, but the body leaves legs as it's tilted. Looks remarkable.

Big, big aroma: booze, coconut and vanilla, and tonnes of straight, spiritous bourbon. Sharp, brusque and powerful. The oak character gives a hint of wine as well, which is a pleasant counterpoint to the big, boozy sweetness. Amazing stuff.

Light burn on the front of the palate, with a sharp hit of spirits. This melds later into smoother notes: chocolate, oak, port and a brusque earthiness that becomes dominant later, leaving a hint of oxidation and wet cardboard. Some cream characters bring up the rear. Aftertaste is very hot.

Feel is surprisingly light: certainly lighter than you expect for all the richness on the palate. But it maintains that burn from the booze meaning however the texture, you feel this beer all the way down.

I had this side-by-side with the Matt, and this was clearly the lesser of the two (although that's comparing something to near-perfection). This was sharper, crisper and harsher. But there's no doubting the complexity and scope of both these beers. They are truly impressive examples of the craft.

m - Medium body and low carbonation, very smooth and creamy body to it. Not hot at all in the mouthfeel.

o - Overall I thought this was a really nice beer. The nose was a little old and boozy, but that booze didn't come through much in the taste. It is a sweet beer but a good one. Would like to have it again.

I believe Jeff provided this one... huge thanks to him for nailing yet another one of my long time wants. 2011 vintage, 12 oz. bottle edition. It pours deep brown, very nearly black, with some dark ruby edges that only pop out when light is shining through the beer. The khaki head sifts quietly on top of the brew for a while before misting into a chunky ring and collar at the edge.

It's got an aroma that would only be fit for a Hair of the Dog brew; figs, raisins, woody oak, prunes, soft leather, tobacco, bourbon, back end anise, and a never-ending battle between sharp booziness and balancing sweetness that keeps you guessing with each and every whiff. Just like many other Hair of the Dog beers, Adam From the Wood's complexity is something to ponder.

Warmth only brings out more nuances and opens this thing up like Pandora's box. More sticky molasses sweetness, more booze-soaked, dense oak, dark fruits, leathery tobacco; approaching perfection for the style, no doubt. In all honestly, I enjoyed the nose on Matt just a bit more, but that's like saying I like the Corvette ZR1 better than the Z06. They're still both fantastic.

A surfboard of oak crashing across a wavy ocean of smooth bourbon with black cherry, date, and sweet raisin buoys engulfs your palate with even the tiniest sip. Warming up to Adam From the Wood, it starts to reveal its sweeter side, with generous helpings of burnt brown sugar, mild vanilla, and more of that signature "leathery tobacco" that Hair of the Dog is notorious for.

Even the smallest sips contain so much action; the flavor density of this brew is phenomenal. A lingering finish of brown sugar, dark fruits, and boozy oak keeps your palate happily waiting for the next sip to come its way. Monstrous in terms of body; this thing is huge, sticky, heavy, and chewy, and will coat the inside of your mouth like honey. Low carbonation, understandably, lends a hand to the smooth mouth feel.

Glad to finally get a chance to try this beer and see what everyone has been raving about. No wonder people love it. As good as it is, though, I still prefer Matt just a bit, as it's slightly more complex, yet even more drinkable, or at least as drinkable as any 10% ABV old ale could dream to be. No matter, Adam from the Wood is fantastic, and I need to keep my hunting spears ready when the next batch is (hopefully) released.

App- A purple/red creamy looking pour. Very little in terms of bubbles/head or lacing. Just flat. So Adam is a different animal in terms of bubbles. I’ve noticed the base beer pours great but with barrel treatments not so much.

Smell- So with only being aged on oak, I wasn’t expecting the sweetness to it, but this had a bit of dark fruits and licorice behind it. The base of Adam came in a little bit and then evolved with a bit of the oak. A bit rustic and damp smelling IMO.

Taste- This was for me the best of the 3 Adam’s I have had. The Cherry Adam is nice, but a bit tangled in terms of flavor. The AFTW is a great beer that plays off the strength of Adam and amps it up a bit with a fine oak flavor and a bit more wispy booze.

Mouth- Medium bodied with a low carb level. Creamy dessert beer is the best way to say it.

2011 vintage enjoyed on-site at HOTD. Beer revisited a year later with a pour from the 2014 vintage.

The flavor on this beer is all over the place, in a peculiarly good way. Sweet caramel and dark fruits up front, then an alcoholic heat, followed by residual oak and earthiness, finishing with leather and tobacco notes.

2011 is adequately carbonated, 2014 is flat, though carbonation has little effect on how enjoyable the beer is. 2014 might have a slight edge on 2011 in terms of taste.